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Mikel Brown Jr., Danny Wolf give Nets new life in comeback win over Hornets
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- Mikel Brown Jr., Danny Wolf give Nets new life in comeback win over Hornets
When Charlotte reclaimed a three-point lead late in the third quarter Wednesday, Mikel Brown Jr. had an answer.
Brown stepped back from 26 feet and buried a 3 with 30.9 seconds remaining, pulling the Nets even at 80. He already knocked down another step back from the same distance in the first quarter, threaded a pass to a cutting Moritz Wagner for a dunk and created an open triple for Noah Clowney.
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The rookie looked remarkably comfortable in his sixth NBA appearance.
And he wasn't the only young Net with something to prove.
Brown scored a career-high 18 points, second year forward Danny Wolf transformed Brooklyn's offensive possibilities in his first meaningful rotation opportunity of the season, and the Nets rallied past the Charlotte Hornets 114-104 at Barclays Center for their first home victory.
Brooklyn improved to 2-6, winning for the second time in three games after opening the season with five consecutive losses. Michael Porter Jr. scored 26 points, Julius Randle added 22, and the Nets finally delivered the fourth-quarter performance that had eluded them two nights earlier.
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Still, it was Brown and Wolf who made this victory particularly intriguing.
Brown finished 6-for-11 from the field and 3-for-5 from deep, adding four assists in just under 20 minutes. He created separation with his jumper, attacked mismatches and showed a willingness to move the ball when defenders shifted toward him.
The 20-year-old's decision-making wasn't flawless. Four turnovers, including two in the fourth quarter, complicated an otherwise excellent performance. After a bad pass led to a Charlotte transition dunk, head coach Jordi Fernández replaced Brown with Nolan Traoré for the closing stretch.
Fernández wasn't particularly troubled.
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"I know the couple of turnovers, I'm not concerned because I want him to go out there and play free and be aggressive," Fernández said.
The coach praised Brown's speed, shiftiness and effectiveness in the pick-and-roll. Wolf was equally impressed with his younger teammate.
"I'm proud of him and how he handles himself and the spotlight's never too big for him and we're lucky to have a talent like that in our locker room," Wolf said.
Brown helped Brooklyn respond whenever Charlotte threatened to pull away. Wolf helped change what the Nets could do with the basketball.
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The latter hadn't been a regular part of Fernández's rotation. Through seven games, Wolf had received little opportunity to demonstrate the ballhandling, passing and perimeter shooting that make him an intriguing offensive prospect.
That changed just 1:28 into the third quarter.
Brooklyn trailed 59-50 when Fernández replaced Chaney Johnson with Wolf after another missed Johnson 3. The substitution initially appeared to be a search for something — anything — that might get the Nets moving.
Wolf made it look like an obvious solution. He assisted a Traoré 3, found Randle for a transition layup and converted his own 25-foot triple as Brooklyn ripped off 11 unanswered points to take a 61-59 lead with 7:33 remaining in the period.
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Suddenly, the Nets had a big man who could initiate the break, keep the offense moving and force defenders to respect his jumper.
The Michigan product finished with 13 points, five rebounds and three assists on 4-for-6 shooting, including two 3s. Brooklyn outscored Charlotte by 17 points during his 19 minutes.
"Obviously in the NBA, there's going to be times, especially early in your career that you might not be in the rotation," Wolf said. "And that was the case when we started the year."
He spent those games preparing for an opportunity that finally arrived.
"When coach called my name in the second half, I was ready and I was looking forward to that opportunity and tried doing everything I could to help the team win," Wolf said.
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His most memorable play came in the fourth quarter.
Day'Ron Sharpe rejected Grayson Allen's drive at the rim. Traoré collected the rebound, and Wolf raced ahead in transition, finishing through contact for an and-one that stretched Brooklyn's advantage to 107-97 with 3:49 left.
It was a remarkable sequence for a player his size and an illustration of what he brings beyond the box score.
Sharpe contributed a career-high eight assists and two blocks, overcoming early foul trouble to become another unexpected source of offensive creation. And Wolf wasn't the only seldom-used reserve who seized his chance.
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Veteran Terance Mann played nearly 16 minutes after entering late in the third quarter. He didn't score, missing all four of his shots, but provided another experienced ballhandler, defensive stability and communication. Brooklyn was plus-11 with him on the floor.
Porter was quick to recognize the difference.
"They haven't been in the rotation much, came in ready to play," Porter said of Mann and Wolf.
Fernández acknowledged that the substitutions were prompted partly by players struggling and his desire to find a group that could change the game.
"And then you want to find fresh legs and fresh energy," he said.
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The changes create interesting questions moving forward. Johnson played nine minutes, Keon Ellis played 10 and Clowney missed the second half because of right knee soreness.
Each offers defensive value, but Wednesday showed evidence of how much more varied Brooklyn's offense can become with additional shooting, ballhandling and passing on the floor.
None of that diminishes what the veterans accomplished.
Porter struggled through the first three quarters, entering the fourth with 13 points on 4-for-12 shooting. Then he caught fire, making three consecutive 3s in a span of 79 seconds to give Brooklyn a 99-91 lead with 7:15 left.
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The barrage wasn't accidental. Porter said the Nets repeatedly returned to an action Charlotte couldn't stop.
"Those were play calls that we went back to over and over again when we saw that they were having trouble guarding it and I just had to stay locked in," he said.
Porter finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds, while Randle contributed 22 points and four assists. Traoré added 16 points on 7-for-11 shooting and three steals, making several clutch buckets in the closing minutes.
It was a considerable departure from how Brooklyn began the night.
Charlotte led 57-50 at halftime behind 20 points and five 3s from Allen. The Hornets had nine offensive rebounds before the break, while the Nets hadn't collected one.
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The first half even featured a moment of unintended comedy. Wagner signaled toward Brooklyn's bench to challenge a foul called against him. The ensuing review didn't merely uphold the whistle; the foul was upgraded to a flagrant-one.
Brooklyn looked like a different team after halftime.
The Nets outscored Charlotte 64-47 over the final two quarters, shooting 50.6% for the game and recording 25 assists on 40 made baskets. Their 34 fourth-quarter points were particularly encouraging after managing just 11 in the final period of Monday's 103-90 loss to the Knicks.
Porter said he challenged his teammates before the fourth quarter to avoid repeating that collapse.
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"I just told the guys at the beginning of the fourth quarter, let's be a team that learns from our mistakes, tries to not make the same mistake twice," Porter said.
This time, Brooklyn maintained its offensive organization. Different players initiated actions, the ball moved and the Nets continued creating quality opportunities instead of allowing the game to get away.
Fernández even revealed that Randle showed a willingness to stay on the bench when the coach considered bringing him back during Brooklyn's fourth-quarter surge. The veteran urged him to leave the productive group alone.
"Just let them roll," Fernández recalled.
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The Nets open a four-game road trip Saturday against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena. One victory won't settle the rotation, and the challenges that have accompanied Brooklyn's uneven start haven't disappeared.
But Brown and Wolf have given Fernández more options to explore.
And for a team that spent much of Monday's fourth quarter looking toward the bench for answers, there was something fitting about Wednesday's finish.
The players on the floor had found enough of their own.
